After listening to some of the Emiya theme from Unlimited Blade Works, I had this idea that I wasn't sure about fitting into Healing Over Time, since it's supposed to be a Saber and Tomoko centric story. But, welp, I seem to have a thing for swords-wielding people, so a little piece that could come along in the Fate crossover I have going if I can make it work. Also, my empathy just makes me feel for all the Servants in one way or another, plus with finals coming up, I needed to write out the stress.

Here we go. Theme for this piece is linked, being the orchestra version of Fate Zero's To The Beginning. Please let me know if you want to see this kind of development happen in the story for real!

"Master."

Even if we had known each other for a long while, I found myself tensing from the formality of the title. I should've expected it, but can you blame me? I was still a civilian girl, even with ninja loved ones and two very strong people at my side.

"Archer," I tried not to sigh while turning my head to face him from my place at the piano, pushing a long strand of hair behind my ear. "I told you to call me 'Tomoko', didn't I?"

The white-haired Servant shrugged, his usual flippant smile on his face. Even with a waist-apron and his hair down to cover his forehead compared to the original slicked back look, it was still Archer. The insufferable dork I got to know as Archer. "Apologies, it's a habit." The gleam in his eyes said otherwise though, and I tried not to snort, scooting over for him to take a seat when he walked over nonetheless. "There was something I needed to ask you."

That was new. I made sure to sit up a bit straighter, activate the nearest privacy seal on the piano, and make eye contact for the sake of giving him my full attention. "What is it?"

"…" For the first time that entire day, the bravado on Archer's face seemed to falter, as if he was hesitating. It was easy to note the sudden tension surfacing in his shoulders too, and once we made eye contact, he jerked his head to the side, breaking it off. "Never mind. It's nothing."

Uh, no. That's not nothing. Outwardly, I exhaled before shaking my head. "Archer. It's not 'nothing' if you pause like that. You can speak your mind, y'know. It's why I tell you not to call me 'Master', because we're humans before Master and Servant. And I see you as a friend." Even when a part of me wasn't sure if it was okay, I still reached over to lightly touch his hand. "So, you can say it. What's wrong?"

Archer still wasn't meeting my eyes, in spite of his shoulders relaxing just the slightest tad.

I extended my touch so that I could be holding his hand. "Is something bothering you, Archer? Or is it something I'm doing?" The second thought popped up just as I finished, and I found myself adding, "If you want me to do something for you, I can."

The last thing I was expecting was the loud and exasperated huff on his part. "That's the thing." Archer swiveled his head to meet my eyes, and I could already feel myself flinching from how dark his eyes were. Were those gray eyes ever so clouded before? His eyebrows too were furrowed in a way that resembled anger, and I tried to swallow the sudden lump in my throat. "What are you trying to do? You have two Servants with you, Master. Two Servants that could do whatever you wish. Fight for you. Kill for you. And yet you do not ask for anything, instead providing Saber and I housing and food, without even requesting a single thing." The lump in my throat seemed all the more suffocating with how he was suddenly gripping my hand tight enough to somewhat hurt. "What is your plan, Master? What do you mean to accomplish? What do you really want?"

I opened my mouth before closing it. "Um," was the tiny response that came out of my throat. In any other case, I probably would've resembled a child with how quiet the reply was. "Am I allowed to note that both yours and Saber's summonings were, um… accidental?"

I had no plan. Things happened, and I was rolling with the punches. That was how things were going. This wasn't something I could've predicted, but for some reason, I wished I could've if it meant not being reminded of someone I lost a long time ago.

'Do you ever stop talking and listen?'

Archer lurched back as quickly as he did when he originally leaned in to stare at me. The grip on my hand loosened too as his eyes seemed to clear. "Master." His voice was softer now, a far cry from the tone he used before. Huh? "Are you scared?"

I didn't even realize tears were budding in my eyes before one was already falling and Archer reached over with his other hand to wipe it away. Oh. "U-Uuuu," was the best approximation of the whimper that left my throat. "A-A little, yeah. I'm sorry. I'm sorry." The ramble was already coming on. "For being inexperienced. For not… not being a real 'Master' to you."

"Master." Archer's voice was still that same soft tone. "You don't have to—"

"I-I don't know, okay?! About what I want to do with your powers. With Saber's." I didn't know where the yell came from. Maybe it was the tone from before. Maybe it was the scathing remarks from before. I didn't know. All I knew was that I was yelling, Archer was still here, and I had a point to make. "I'm not a Mage. I'm not any kind of special magician! I'm not even a ninja like my best friends! I'm just a civilian girl, with some weird chakra that lets her touch other people emotionally! Said chakra being enough to bring you both here!" I didn't even ask for my chakra to be like that. It just was like that, and there wasn't much I could do about it except train and control. "I'm just a pianist girl. A-And, I'm not a Master. I can't save the world. I can't be a hero." The oxygen was leaving me quickly, so I took a deep breath to try calming myself. "All that I am now is that same pianist girl, just with two more people in her home that need hugs in my opinion."

The grip on my hand was lax, but still persistent. "…'Need' hugs?" Archer repeated quietly.

"I've seen my friends bleed, Archer. I've seen myself die." The words felt like poison in my mouth, and through our held hands, I could feel Archer flinch too. Of course he wasn't expecting the last part. I never told anyone but Kei about that. Saber didn't even know. But it was the truth. I couldn't be anything but honest. "I don't want to see others fall further than that. I don't want to see other people get hurt like that. Hell, I don't want to see people constantly fight and kill their souls in the process of 'justice.'" Because Kei became a ninja and was already becoming numb to blood. It didn't stop the worry that one day, she would lose more to missions and so on when I wasn't looking. "So, hugs."

"Hugs," Archer repeated. Was it just me, or did I hear a bit of surprise in his voice? Or awe?

"Hugs, music, baking, anything I can do without hurting someone." Maybe me, but I don't mind. Everyone I love knows when to bring me back. "We're all going to die eventually. Excuse my language, Archer, but the world is shit. People can be shit."

"…" Without even looking up, I knew Archer had turned his head away.

Even if it hurt to acknowledge it, both of my statements were true. We both knew this. Orochimaru was human, and he was one of the greatest shitbags Kei and the others had to deal with, more so with his being an insult to the entire LGBTQIA+ community. Madara was human, and he nearly destroyed my village and home in the name of a distant pipe-dream that would be "better for everyone." The White Zetsu even were all once human, and now they were putties that the ninja needed to exterminate if we wanted any chance to exterminate Kaguya for good. To put her away as the Sage of Six Paths wanted.

With my free hand, I wiped at my eyes to get those darn tears out. Now wasn't the time to break down, especially when Archer was waiting for me to finish. "But that doesn't mean people can't improve on themselves to not be shit. That doesn't mean the world has to stay shit."

An exhale, and then the grip on my hand tightened. "So then…"

I raised my head to give Archer a smile. "Life can suck, but so what? It doesn't stop me from trying my best to help others be a bit happier. It doesn't stop me from trying to be kind and making someone's day a bit brighter. And you and Saber are some of those people I want to see have better lives."

Every single part of me was calling to hug Archer now, because the shock in his gray eyes was painful. Even then, I held back, both from our shared hand-holding and how my shoulders were shaking. How I didn't trust myself in not making Archer uncomfortable.

"I might've summoned you both by accident. I might not be the Master you and Saber might want in any kind of grand conflict, heck, I don't even know what happened to the two of you that led you here to the first place." A small laugh left me at that, because to that old ex-friend, he probably would've called me pathetic. Childish, even. But it was all me. Plain old me. "But back when I summoned you to right now, in this very moment, I see you two as equals. Friends to treat with care and respect. So I don't want you to sacrifice yourselves for me. There's no huge war going on right now, so there's no need to really fight unless you feel the need to."

Archer's jaw slackened by the slightest margin while in contrast, his grip on my hand tightened. "Master."

My smile was still going strong as I squeezed his hand in return. "So, if you don't mind working in the cafe, eating the occasional cake and muffin, and hearing a little civilian girl ramble in both words and music notes to try helping fighters be human and live again, you can stay. I'm not forcing you to stay if you don't want to. You're not just a Servant, Archer." I meant every single bit of it. My heart was beating hard enough to prove that. "Even with swords and magic, you're still human. And to me, you're a friend. If I'm doing something wrong, you have the full decision to leave."

The grip on my hand was still strong. "…" I was not expecting him to scoff softly. "What a naive and selfless Master I've ended up with this time."

Even with the remnants of tears, a pout was forming on my face anyways. It did not help my case of squeaking, though. "I-I know I'm naive, but I'm fine with it! If you have a problem, speak it!" Another breath, and then I found myself blurting out, "A-And what did I just say about me not being a Master?!"

The laugh was completely out of left field. My eyes stung while blinking, but Archer was actually laughing. It wasn't the scoff of disbelief I had grown accustomed to, or the mocking one he did when someone was trying to rile him up. This laugh was warm. "Hahaha," he threw his head back, smiling all the while. "A-Apologies, Master," and then he was making eye contact with me. Those gray eyes were shining now. "I'm not laughing at you. I…" a more solemn smile covered his face as he turned away slightly. "I just remembered something nostalgic. That was a good laugh." He turned back to meet my eyes, and the smile was unmistakable. It was soft. Just like Saber's when we first met. "Is that what you wish to do?"

"It's not a wish, it's my dream, Archer." I couldn't help the small squeaky laugh on my part too. "I can't fight like Kei and the others can. I can't really be a hero from the fairy tales. But I can be kind. I can help people. And even if it's small and doesn't matter to the people above me, it still changes things. Kindness can make the world a bit better, one little thing at a time." My throat was feeling parched now, and I couldn't help but sigh this time. "And if you keep calling me Master, I'm going to assume you're okay with that, which I don't want to assume unless you want to say otherwise…"

Archer rolled his eyes while still reaching over with his free hand to brush at the edges of my eyes with his thumb. "I'm merely surprised. I've had many Masters over the long time I've been a Heroic Spirit. But you…" The dirt at my eyes was gone, so why was his hand lingering…? "You, Tomoko, have said some of the most outrageous things I have ever heard."

Another "uuuuu" left me before I could stop myself. Archer said my name, but still. "I-I'm happy that you called me 'Tomoko', Archer, but is that a compliment or an insult?"

"Ah, it appears I have, Tomoko." Archer chuckled and shook his head. He used my name again. "It's just a saying," he said instead, and his hand still rested on my cheek. "But even if the words are naive, it's not a bad thing to believe in. Inspiring, almost." That spark in his eyes though, that was new. It was different enough to be blindingly bright compared to the cloudiness from before, but still. It made me feel like something changed somehow, somewhat. His thumb rubbed the corner of my eye as he continued to smile. "Do not change."

Something was up now. "So then," my voice was quiet now. "You don't mind me?"

"You're one large piece of work, Master, but you're alright." He let his hand drop from my cheek, but the other hand was still gripping mine. "My job has simply changed."

The curiosity was tugging at me before I could stop myself. "T-To what?"

Archer huffed in exasperation, but he still smiled at me nonetheless. "From fighting in the Holy Grail War to cooking for a selfless workaholic girl who is far more of a hero than she gives herself credit for. It's a welcome change."

Welp. There went my heart. And the off button on the embarrassment. "A-Archer…"

Archer snorted. "Your face is red, Master. Is something wrong?"

Oh my god, this insufferable ass. He was getting mileage out of this. "J-JUST LET ME HUG YOU, DAMMIT!"

Archer still laughed once I tackled him. It didn't stop Saber from noticing and striding over. The questioning voice over my head was obvious. The privacy seal must've been turned off. "Archer, what did you do?"

"Oh, nothing," was the casual reply, almost matching the strong hand resting on the back of my head as I did my best to hide my red face in the crook of his neck. "I just had a talk with the Master and now owe her a plate of omurice."

"…Could I get a plate too?"

"Always with the bottomless stomach, Saber. Alright. I'll cook as much as you both want."

"Archer…!" was the helpless whine coming out of my lips. Tears were already budding in my eyes again, because he was being nice and I didn't deserve any of it. "You dooooooooooork…"

"Being a dork seems to be the best course of action when handling a naive Master, Tomoko."

Yep. Insufferable dork. And occasional ass. And I don't think I'd have him any other way.

I always did start loving the dorks.